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Syria unwilling to pressure Lebanon allies: minister
AFP, January 1,
2008
BEIRUT, Dec 31,
2007 (AFP) - Syria is unwilling to put pressure on its
Lebanon allies in the crisis that has left it without a
president for over a month, Information Minister Mohsen
Bilal said in comments published on Monday.
He was reacting
to President Nicolas Sarkozy's announcement on Sunday that
France would have no more contact with Syria until Damascus
showed a willingness to let Lebanon find a new president.
Damascus
revealed on Monday that despite the threat, the French
presidency had twice contacted Foreign Minister Walid
Muallem earlier in the day.
"Foreign
Minister Walid Muallem has received two phone calls this
morning from the secretary general of the Elysee, Claude
Gueant, concerning the efforts of Syria and France to reach
a consensual settlement of the Lebanon crisis," the official
news agency SANA reported.
"The talks have
led to a means of helping the Lebanese parties overcome the
political crisis and reach a consensus solution with regard
to guaranteeing the security and stability of Lebanon," the
agency said.
Bilal said
earlier that Syria had reached agreement with France on the
outlines of an overall settlement to the crisis and was
prepared to use its influence but not put pressure on the
Lebanese opposition to accept the deal.
"If people are
asking us to put pressure on Syria's friends, we have made
no agreement to do that," he told the pan-Arab daily Asharq
Al-Awsat.
"We have
reached agreement with the French and with our friends on a
package deal to arrive at an overall settlement.
"We are using
our influence with those who like us in Lebanon to proceed
to the election of a consensus candidate."
During a news
conference in Cairo on Sunday, Sarkozy accused Syria of
failing to match its words about wanting a settlement to
Lebanon's 13-month-old political crisis with deeds on the
ground.
"We are now
waiting for acts on Syria's part and not speeches," he said.
France "will have no more contact with Syria... until we
have proof of Syrian willingness to let Lebanon appoint a
president by consensus."
Bilal said
Syria remained willing to work with France for a solution
despite Sarkozy's comments.
"We didn't
interpret them as an implicit accusation. Relations have
been continuing until now despite the comments and we are
working with the French to extricate Lebanon from this
crisis."
But the
minister lashed out at any suggestion that Damascus was
meddling in its smaller neighbour's affairs.
"Who's
interfering in Lebanon's affairs? If this accusation is
true, it's the French who are interfering, not us. We don't
go to Lebanon as (French Foreign Minister Bernard) Kouchner
and others have been doing. They visit and we help them."
Kouchner has
made seven visits to Beirut in the space of six months to
shuttle between the Western-backed government and the
Syrian- and Iranian-backed opposition.
Washington has
also sent a senior envoy to try to broker a deal.
On Friday, a
parliament session called to elect a president was postponed
until January 12, the 11th time that a vote had been put
off.
The two sides
have agreed on army chief Michel Sleiman as a compromise
choice to fill the vacant candidacy, but they remain at odds
over a new government line-up.
The opposition
pulled its six ministers out of the cabinet in November 2006
and has since demanded the formation of a government of
national unity embracing all of the country's myriad
confessional and political groups. |
